The mid morning sun shone on their backs as they walked along the city street, Nicole was as usual wearing a plain, oversized T-Shirt and a pair of loose patterned shorts. On her feet were her oldest and most comfortable joggers. Trisha, she noticed when they reached the waiting tour bus, was clad in a body-hugging halter top and knee length leggings. No matter what she wore, she always managed to look fashionable and sexy. Nicole knew she looked more like a school girl than an adult, but today she didn’t care. She wasn’t there to impress anyone, merely enjoy the tour.
She agreed to let Robert have the window seat on the way out, providing she could have it on the return journey. To her relief it was Jim who took the seat beside Trisha in front of them. Just as she was about to thank her lucky stars that Philip had changed his mind, he climbed aboard the bus and slipped into a seat several rows away.
Nicole allowed herself to relax, knowing he was far enough away not to bother her, and focused her attention on the scenery through the tinted windows.
It didn’t take long for the bus to leave the city behind. Soon they were heading through undulating green hills, scattered with dairy farms and picturesque lakes.
About three quarters of an hour into their journey, they made their first stop, a natural landmark called
The Devils Kitchen
. Nicole admired the way thousands of years of erosion had cut an almost square doorway through the sandstone, allowing the waves to foam and froth through the gap. Above it small trees and shrubs continued to grow undisturbed. She walked along the path leading along the cliff top, enthralled by the rugged beauty spreading out below.
As she turned to head back up the path, she saw something else which made her stare in amazement. Walking about ten metres ahead of her were Jim and Trisha with their arms wrapped around one another.
Wasn’t it only yesterday that Trisha had still been interested in Philip Pelayo? Nicole knew she should be glad her friend now seemed to prefer the more likable blonde man, but wondered about her change of heart. Had Philip shown his true colors? She could but hope. Nicole hadn’t seen him since they had stopped, which meant he must have taken the other route around the look-out, grateful he’d decided to keep out of their way.
“Time’s up,” Robert chirped, as he came bounding up behind her. He noticed her staring after Trisha and Jim. “That’s tame compared to last night. Very tame.”
So it went back that far. Why hadn’t Trisha said anything? Surely that would have been her first topic of conversation, but all she’d been interested in talking about was what had happened between Nicole and Philip on the yacht. He was already seated when Nicole got back on the bus, and appeared to be deep in conversation with the young girl beside him. She looked no older than fourteen or fifteen, and judging by the way she was smiling at him, totally enthralled with whatever he was telling her. It made Nicole wonder why she seemed to be the only female who was immune to him. Perhaps because he had never really tried to lay the charm on with her. Not unless she counted keeping her from freezing to death and serving her hot soup to help her recover.
Nicole gave herself a mental shake as she sped up her pace past him, reminding herself he would probably have done the same for anyone else on the yacht. They worked as a team, and looked out for one another. It was not a sign he thought anything of her other than the annoying female who had brow-beaten her father into letting her come on the race.
As she drew parallel with his seat, his hand shot out, and he took hold of her wrist. He pulled her closer, so that she was leaning over him.
“Good morning Nicole. Did you sleep well last night?”
Nicole was instantly aware of the dark cynicism in his voice. Clean shaven, with his ebony hair brushed neatly back from his high forehead into a tidy ponytail, Nicole could see why the young girl was happy to have him beside her. At this close range, the sun slanting through the window made his eyes glow golden.
“Very well, thank you,” she replied frostily, wishing for perhaps the hundredth time that he wasn’t quite so attractive.
“I didn’t. My ribs were too sore. Want me to show you the great big bruise I’ve got?”
“Not particularly.”
“It hurts Nicole,” he complained in mock injury. “And seeing it’s all your fault, I think you should do something about it.”
“Like give you another one,” she suggested crossly. “Let go of my arm, Philip. There are people trying to get to their seats,” Nicole glanced around at Robert and Trisha standing behind her in the aisle.
“All right, but don’t think you’re going to get away with this. I demand compensation.” There was a strange glint in his eyes as he slowly let her hand slip from his.
Realizing she was free, Nicole headed for her own seat. Her contented mood had well and truly been shattered by this latest confrontation. Why couldn’t he just stay out of her way? Surely he must be well aware by now that she wanted nothing more to do with him.
It wasn’t much further to Port Arthur, where they joined a group being shown around the ruined gaol complex. Robert seemed fascinated with the depraved conditions and ill treatment the early arrivals had been forced to endure in this harsh but beautiful place. Nicole was saddened by the story. No matter what they had done, it was more of a criminal offense to make them work from dawn to dusk with less than a thousand calories a day, and then crowd them into filthy gaol cells where disease and malnutrition ran rife.
As they walked around the various points of interest, Nicole continued to be subjected to Philip’s presence. He rarely seemed to be more than a few feet away from her, when he could quite easily have wandered around with the young girl who appeared to have rejoined her parents. Reluctantly Nicole found herself noticing what the teenager so obviously admired about him. The red and white striped shorts and plain white collared T-shirt he had on accentuated the powerful lines of his body. The way that one lock of hair always managed to escape his ponytail was just asking for feminine fingers to reach out and smooth it back behind his ear.
As though conscious of her appraisal, he turned around to glance at her from under his long lashes. Abruptly she turned away, wishing that he would stop hanging around. Everywhere she looked, he just happened to be there. At least he wasn’t making smart remarks to annoy her, merely engaging in casual conversation with Robert.
Following the tour there was a trip aboad a motor cruiser to
The Isle of the Dead.
As the name implied this was where everyone who died in the penal colony had been buried, ranging from convicts in unmarked graves, to free settlers who had moved into the area in search of land and work. Convicts were often sent to the island as punishment. Few dared escape and risk death in the shark-infested waters surrounding it. This time Nicole made more of an effort to keep away from Philip, joining Trisha and Jim, even though they appeared to have become inseparable. Yes, it felt wrong to encroach on their territory, but it was the lesser of two evils as far as Nicole was concerned.
On their return to the mainland, Robert announced that if he didn’t get something to eat he’d die of starvation, so the five of them headed for the Kiosk. They settled on the grass in front of the ruined goal building, Nicole ensuring she sat as far away from Philip as possible. In her attempt to ignore him, she focused her attention on the cruiser taking another group of tourists out to the island, but it proved a futile endeavor, since he seemed determined to make her notice him with his smoldering looks and sexy smiles.
Just what the hell was he playing at?
She was relieved when Robert convinced him to have another look at the museum. Good Nicole thought. That meant they were heading in opposite directions.
Since an hour still remained before the bus was due to leave, Nicole decided to go for a walk to the ruined church on the hill. Scrambling to her feet, she left Trisha and Jim relaxing together on the grass, knowing they would be all over one another the moment her back was turned.
Nicole was reminded of her weakness when she reached the top of the hill. By the time she stopped in front of the entrance of the church she was short of breath. She stepped under the arch and walked into the centre of the courtyard, glancing up at the clear blue sky above the steeple.
Several children scurried past and disappeared through another archway. She realized that there were stairs to climb up to the top of the tower. Nicole would have liked to take in the view from up there, but doubted her weary limbs would survive that and the walk back to the car park.
The best thing to do would be to follow Trisha and Jim’s example, and have a rest. She found a deserted patch of grass under a tall leafy tree. Lying down, she closed her eyes, concentrating on only allowing soothing images into her mind. The country cottage beside a tranquil river she always visualized was slow to come, but when it did, Nicole finally felt the stress of the past few days ebb away.
She knew she had dozed off when all she wanted to do was drift back into oblivion. But the realization that she was lying in the open on the grass instead of her own bed, compelled her to force her eyes open.
“So, sleeping beauty has decided to return to the land of the living.” That seductive deep voice was real, unnervingly so, and Nicole, surprised to discover she was no longer alone, turned her head to see Philip lying propped on one elbow beside her.
“How long have you been there?” she demanded, unnerved not only by his presence, but that he’d caught her unaware.
“Long enough to wonder if you were going to wake of your own accord, or whether to do my Prince Charming impression and wake you with a kiss,” he smiled at her, and there was a warmth in his golden brown eyes she’d never seen before, making him appear almost endearing.
Philip Pelayo endearing?
Her exhaustion was obviously meddling with her mind. He was the last person on earth she would ever consider endearing.
“You do a Prince Charming impression!” Nicole scoffed. “You don’t have a charming bone in your body.”
“Neither do I have any royal blood, but I’m going to kiss you anyway,” he declared.
Before the implication of those words had a chance to sink in, his dark head loomed closer, and she felt the feathered brush of his lips against her own.
“No!” she protested, but it was too late. He swept his warm mouth across hers for a second time.
“Yes,” he insisted, and when she felt his velvet smooth tongue against her parted lips the whole world turned on its axis. It started spinning out of control, as her body filled with the most exquisite sensations she’d ever known. Suddenly the grass smelled greener, the sky appeared bluer. Even the breeze turned into a caress against her face, making her shiver with pleasure.
Then he closed his hot passionate mouth over hers, capturing her lips with his, and she knew this was where he’d been leading her all along. But even more incredible was that she felt tenderness in his kiss. No force. No power, merely the gentle caressing of his mouth. Nicole tasted the chocolate from the ice cream he’d eaten earlier, mingling with the distinctive all male flavor of him.
She felt both his hands slide into her hair as he shifted closer, till the hard wall of his chest brushed against her breasts. At the contact, a spark of heat so intense surged through her veins, she gasped out loud. She felt her nipples peak into arousal, as she ached to get nearer to him. In response to her demanding thoughts, she brought her arms up, winding them around his strong neck.
Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew she should be doing the complete opposite, pushing him away, instead of clinging to him as though her life depended on it. But Nicole had never been given free rein of her sexuality, never permitted herself to feel true desire. That it should be for this men she barely knew, and up till now hadn’t even liked, hardly seemed to matter anymore.
“Mmm. Yes - hold me, touch me,” he murmured against her mouth, capturing her bottom lip between his teeth.
Nicole tucked the renegade lock of hair behind his ear, surprised by the silken fullness of it. Instinctively she pulled him closer still, till she felt the full length of his muscular body against her own soft curves.
A shudder passed through him at the contact. He wanted her. She could feel the hard thrust of his desire as he moved one of his hair-roughened thighs against her smooth ones, bringing his hips in contact with hers. To know she could turn a man on, particularly this one filled her with something else she had never possessed; confidence, power, but most of all amazement.
Suddenly his mouth left hers. “Say my name, Nicole. I want to hear how much you want me, how much you ache for me.”
His lips were now moving tenderly against her cheek, as he rained tiny kisses of fire across her flushed face. She gripped his ponytail, and with a shuddering breath, gasped, “Oh Philip... Oh.”
He made a little noise of satisfaction, before moving away from her. Nicole shivered from a cool gust of air as their bodies separated. Her eyelids flickered open, to see him looking down at her with what could only be interpreted as a smug, self-satisfied expression on his face.
Nicole felt a flush of utter shame rock through her, as it dawned on her exactly why he’d kissed her. Her stomach churned sickly in self-disgust. How could she have let such a thing happen, and out in the open where other people could see them?
“Now do you see how much your subconscious has given away? Look at you! Your eyes are misted with desire, your lips moist with longing, and your body...” He brushed his fingertips across the peaks of her nipples.
“Stop it!” she snapped, struggling to sit up. “All right, you’ve proved your point. I hope you’re happy with yourself, but don’t for a moment think it’s going to happen again.”
They were both sitting up now, facing each other like the adversaries they were.